1. Technical Field
Embodiments of the present invention include a tank assembly for storing a compressed gas. The tank assembly includes a collar assembled thereto to facilitate the mounting of bodies to the tank assembly.
2. Background Art
Tanks for storing compressed gas are well known. Conventional tanks are capable of storing compressed gas at very high pressures. For example, hydrogen may be stored in tank assemblies at pressures of up to 10,000 psi, and beyond. However, the systems that use compressed gases, such as an internal combustion engine and fuel cells, typically operate at far lower pressures. Accordingly, the compressed gas stored in the tank assembly must first pass through a regulator or some other mechanism which reduces the pressure of the stored gas before it can be utilized. Conventional tank assemblies do not include a mount for regulators. Accordingly, systems utilizing a conventional tank assembly position the regulator remotely from the valve. Positioning the regulator remotely from the valve has many disadvantages including, but not limited to, the added cost associated with using a high pressure hose/line to contain the high pressure compressed gas outside of the tank assembly prior to passing through the regulator. Additionally, the wear and tear associated with maintaining a high pressure compressed gas in a hose/line is greater than the wear and tear associated with maintaining gas at lower pressures. These and other disadvantages increase as the distance between the regulator and the tank assembly's valve increases.
Prior solutions to this problem have involved mounting devices such as regulators directly to the valve of the tank assembly. Such devices, however, frequently have a good deal of mass. The valve of a tank assembly may not be sufficiently robust to tolerate the forces acting on the valve and the devices during normal equipment operations.